Automatic alarm clock



May 23, 1933. E. L CARLSQN 1,910,983

AUTOMATIC ALARM CLOCK Filed March 6, 1930 a 50 ze lll' Patented May 23,1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ELOF I. CARLSON, `Ol BRISTOL,CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR' T0 THE E. INGRAHAM COMPANY, OF BRISTOL,CONNECTICUT, .A CORPORATION AUTOMATIC ALARM oLoox Application led March6,

This invention relates to an improvement in automatic alarm clocks andparticularly to the means employed for automatically releasingthe manualshut-off member thereof after the same has been manually moved into itsshut-off position.

The main object of this invention is to provide ,an automatic alarmclock with a simple7 reliable and effective mechanism for holding itsmanually-operable alarm shuto' member in its shut-off position andautomatically releasing ther same for movement into its retired positionwithout imposing a load of such character upon the time-train as willimpair the time-keeping properties thereof.

- With the above and other objects in view, as will appear from thefollowing, my invention consists in an automatic alarm-control mechanismhaving certain details of construction andy combinations of parts aswill be hereinafter described rand particularly recited in the claims. i

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a face view of an automatic alarm clock embodying myinvention;

Fig. 2 is a broken View thereof in front elevation with a portion of thecrystal and dial broken away to expose the movement;

tion and the parts being in the positions due to them when the alarmshut-off plunger is in its alarm shut-off position;

' Fig. 3 is a broken view thereof in transverse section taken on theline 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a corresponding View, but showing the parts in the positionsdue to them after the time-train of the clock has automatically effectedthe release of the latch to permit the retirement of the shut-offplunger; v

Fig; 5 is a detached perspective view of the alarm shut-off latch; and

Fig. 6 in a corresponding view of the alarm shut-off slide.

In the embodiment of my invention herein chosen for illustration, Iemploy a sheetmetalpivotal latch 10 provided at its upper end with alatch-nose 11, at its inner end the case-back being shown partially inseci 1930. Serial No. 433,622.

with a fork 12 and between its ends with a rearwardly-turned ear 13. Thesaid ear is perforated, as shown, for the reception of a rivet-like stud14 serving to pivotally conneet the said latch to theforwardly-projecting end of a bracket 15 secured, by means (if a screw16, to the front movement-plate The latch-nose 11 is formed upon itsupper face with a cam-surface 18 and is adapt- '60 ed to overlie thehorizontal reach 19 of an alarm shut-off slide 20 mounted for verticalreciprocation upon the rear face of the front movement-platel 17 bymeans ofy a stud 21 carrying a friction-washerk 22 bearing B5 againstthe rear face of the said slide. The said vshut-off slide 20 may be ofany approved construction and, as shown, is rovided in its horizontalreach 19 with a lieyhole-slot 23 for the reception of the grooved lowerend -70 of a shut-off plunger 24 reciprocatingr vertically in aring-head 25, screwed into the vperiphery of the clock-case-26. The saidshut-off plunger 24 is provided at its upper exposed end withv aball-like 'finger-button 27 and serves to depress 'the shut-0H slide 20so as to engage` the stop-finger 28 thereof with the teeth of averge-wheel 29, forming a usual feature of alarm clocks.

n For the purpose of lifting the shut-off slide 2() and the shut-offplunger 24 from the positions in which they are shown in Fig. 4 when thelatch 10 has been operated by the time-train, as will hereinafterappear, I employ a helical-spring 3() having its lower end hooked over arearwardlyextending stud 31 mounted upon the said shut-off slide 20, andits upper end hooked lover a stud 32 rearwardly-projecting from thefront movement-plate 17 before referred to. y

The forked lower end 12 of the pivotal latch 10 straddles theinwardly-projecting hub 33 of an alarm-cam wheel 34 mounted `g5 in theusual manner of alarm clocks, with capacity for rotary and reciprocatingmovement upon an alarm-setl arbor 35 and carrying upon its forward yfacethe usual alarm-cam coacting with an alarm-cam 1100 finger 37radially-offsetting from the arbor 85, in the usual manner of alarmclocks.

The alarm-cam wheel 34 just above referred to is continuousl driven inthe usual manner of eight-day a arm clocks, so as to rotate once in eachtwenty-four hours, by the time-train from one of the dial-wheels 38thereof acting through the intermediary of a. gear-and-pinion traincomprising a pinion 39, gear 40 and pinion 41.

The said alarm-cam wheel 34 is also urged forward so as to maintain thealarm-cam 3G in engagement with the alarm-cam finger 37 by a sheet-metalalarm-cam spring 42 perforated about midway of its length for thepassage of the alarm-Set arbor 85 and bearing against the hub 33 of thewheel 34 thereon. The spring 42 is secured at one end by a rivet 48 tothe front movementplate 17 and is provided at its opposite free end withan inwardly-turned alarm-stop finger 44 adapted to engage with ahammertail 45 offsetting from the integral arbor 46 of a sheet-metalverge 47 coacting in the usual manner with the verge-wheel 29 beforereferred to.

The verge 47 above referred to mounts a hammer-arm 48 carrying ya hammer49 at its outer end, which latter operates through a clearance-opening50 in the caseback 51 to strike a cup-shaped bell 52 secured in theusual manner to the rear face of the said case-back in spaced relationthereto.

lVith the parts of the clock in the positions shown in Figs. 2 and 3,the shut-off slide 20 has' been depressed by means of the shut-offplunger 24 to engage its stop-finger 28 with the verge-wheel 29 to haltthe sounding of the alarm. In this depressed position of the slide thelatch-nose 11 of the pivotal latch 10 is hooked over the upper face ofthe horizontal reach 19 of the said slide, so as to prevent theretirement of the same under the urge of the helical spring 30 and hencemaintain the stop-finger 28 in engagement with the verge-wheel 29 toprevent the sounding of the alarm. The said nose 11 of the latch 10 isurged inward into the position shown in Fig. 3 by means of a sheet-metalspring 53 having its free end resting against the outer face of the saidlever above the stud 14 thereof and its opposite end secured by a nut 54to one of the pillars 55 of the movement.

Now, with the parts in the positions shown in Figs. 2 and 3, in whichthe alarmtrain is prevented from running by the engagement of thestop-finger 28 with the verge-wheel 29, as above described, the rotationof the alarm-cam wheel 34 by the dial-wheel 38 of the time-train willCause the slope 5G of the cam 36 to crowd the alarm-wheel 84, togetherwith its hub 33, rearward, with the effect of slowly rocking the pivotallatch 10 in a direction to disengage its nose 11 from the horizontalreach 19 of the slide 20.

Simultaneously with the rocking of the latch 10, as above described, thealarm-cam spring 42 is flexed inward by the hub 33 to move thestop-finger 44 of the said spring into the path of the hammer-tail 45.It is to be noted that the parts are so propor- `tioned that thestop-finger 44 is interposed in the path of the hammer-tail 45 beforethe latch 10 has been swung sufficiently to disengage its nose 11 fromthe horizontal reach 19 of the slide to permit the upward movementthereof and the disengagement of its stop-finger 28 from the verge-wheel29.

lVhen the movements, as previously enumerated, have been completed, theparts will have assumed the positions in which they are shown in Fig. 4.Now in the ruiming of the clock and the continued rotation of thealarm-cam wheel 34, the same will snap forward under the urge of thespring 42, when the low-point of the slope 56 of the cam 36 has beenbrought into alignment with the 'alarm-cam finger 8T. This forwardmovement of the alarm-Cain wheel 34 and alarmcam spring 42 will effectthe retirement of the stop-finger 44 of the latter from the path of thehammer-tail 45 and thus permit the sounding of the alarm.

To stop the alarm in such manner that the same may be againautomatically sounded twenty-four hours later, the user of the clockdepresses the shut-off` plunger 24, with the effect of similarlydepressing the shut-off slide 20 against. the counterurge of the spring30, so as to engage the stop-finger 28 of the said slide with the teethof the vergewheel 29 to check the sounding of the alarm.

During the downward movement of the slide 20 just described, the forwardedge of the horizontal reach 19 thereof will have engaged thecam-surface 18 of the pivotal latch V1() and rocked the nose 18 thereofforward zontal reach 19 and effectively retain the' slide in itsdepressed alarm-shut-off position until such time during the running ofthe clock as the stop-finger 44 of the alarm-cam spring 42 has beenmoved into the path of the hammer-tail 45.

As before described, short-ly after the stopfinger 44 has beeninterposed in the path of' the hammer-tail 45, the pivotal latch 1()will have been rocked sufficiently by the inward movement of thealarm-cam wheel 34 to fully retire the nose 11 of the said latch andpermit the slide to be moved into its upward or retired position by thespring 30, preparatory to another automatic release of the alarm.

fIlO

In the event that the user of the clock wishes to cut the alarm out ofaction, a sliding alarm-stop 57 is provided which has sliding movementwithin the clock-case and is provided with a finger 58 adapted to bemoved into the path of the hammer-arm 48 by means of a linger-button 59located upon the periphery of the case 26 and having a threaded 'stem 60projecting inward, through a slot 61 in the same and a slot 62 in thecase-back 51, into engagement with a bushing 63 secured to the saidshut-off slide 57.

By providing a pivotal latch, such as 10, for holding the alarm-shut-ofslide or member 20 in its alarm-shut-off position, and operating thesaid lever by the alarm-cam 36, I am enabled to automatically releasethe said alarm-shut-of member for retirement, Without imposing anyappreciable retardation upon the time-train, so that the timekeepingproperties thereof are not impaired.

I claim:

1. In an automatic alarm clock, the combination with the alarm-cam andalarm-control spring thereof; of a manually-operable alarm-shut-offmember; spring-means normally urging the said shut-off member into itsretired position; a pivotal latch physically distinct from the saidalarm-control spring for releasably holding the said alarmshut-offmember in its operative position and actuated by the said alarm-cam forreleasing the said member for retirement by the said spring-means.

2. In an automatic alarm clock, the combination with the alarm-cam andalarm-control spring thereof; of a manually-operable alarm-shut-offmember; spring-means normally urging the said shut-off member into itsretired position; a latch physically distinct from the saidalarm-control spring and pivoted between its ends for releasably holdingthe said alarm-shut-ofil member in its operative position and having oneend provided with a latch-nose and its opposite end actuated by the saidalarm-cam for releasing the said member for retirement by the saidspring-means.

3. In an automatic alarm clock, the combination with the alarm-cam andalarm-control spring thereof; of a manually-operable reciprocatingalarm-shut-oii' slide; springmeans normally urging the said slide intoits retired position; a pivotal latch physically distinct from the saidalarm-control spring for releasbly holding the said alarmshut-off slidein its operative position and actuated by the said alarm-cam forreleasing the said slide for retirement by the said sprm -means 4. n anautomatic alarm clock, the combination with the alarm-cam andalarm-control spring thereof; of a manually-operable reciprocatingalarm-shut-ol" slide; springmeans normally urging the said slide intoits retired position; a latch physically distinct from the saidalarm-control spring and pivoted between its ends for releasably holdingthe said alarm-shut-of slide in its operative position and having oneend provided with a latch-nose and its opposite end actuated by the saidalarm-cam for releasing the said slide for retirement by the saidsprmg-means.

5. In an automatic alarm clock, the combination with the alarm-setarbor, alarmcontrol spring and the alarm-cam thereof; of amanually-operable alarm-shut-off member; spring-means normally urgingthe said shut-off member into its retired position; a latch physicallydistinct from the said alarm-control spring and pivoted between its endsand having one end provided with a latch-nose for releasably holding thesaid alarm-shut-oii' member in its operative position and provided atits opposite end with a .fork straddling the said alarm-set arbor inposition to be moved by the said alarm-cam.

In testimony whereof, I have signed this specification.

ELOF L. CARLSON.

